"The Brilliant Detective": critics rated "Knives Out 3" at 96% on Rotten Tomatoes

Benoît Blanc is back and has taken the critics by storm — the third film in the franchise, Knives Out, has received top marks after its debut at the Toronto International Film Festival.

At present, the film “Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery” has almost perfect 96% on Rotten Tomatoes. In reviews, the film is defined as a brilliant detective story, but not without nuances.

Plot and cast of “Knives Out 3”

The third film returns to the investigation of Benoît Blanc (Daniel Craig), this time in a gloomy and gothic atmosphere with references to the works of Edgar Poe and Washington Irving. The setting is a pastoral New England town and a local church, where each of the parishioners will “test” their faith and become a suspect. As in the previous two stories, the detective will not work alone: this time, Father Judge (Josh O’Connor) joined him as an assistant.

Traditionally, the series offers a star-studded cast of suspects. This time, they include Glenn Close, Mila Kunis, Jeremy Renner, Kerry Washington, Andrew Scott, Kaley Spanaway, Daryl McCormack, Thomas Haden Church and Josh Brolin. The movie was directed and written by Rian Johnson.

Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery will be released in theaters on November 26 and will be available on Netflix starting December 12. Earlier we saw a couple of first shots and a teaser, while the full trailer will be announced tonight.

What do critics say?

Reviews point to the gloomy atmosphere and intense political overtones, defining Knives Out 3 as Johnson’s most complex and emotional film. At the same time, praise is often heard for O’Connor, who took over most of the screen time in the story.

• “This is a more complex, darker, and emotional film than the previous two installments, as Johnson explores ideas of faith and logic, the question of whether to lead others through love or anger, and the mythologizing that gets us through the day — all in a brilliant murder mystery.” …. Here we learn a little more about Blanc’s story, and every bit of information seems gigantic. He’s a symbol of everything that makes the Knives Out movies so great: he’s charismatic, goofy when he needs to be, and brilliant when he finds a solution.”— Ross Bonham from Collider.
• “Johnson won’t wow you, but he offers enough surprises, enough style, and enough confidence in his plot that you won’t notice how convoluted it turns out to be. I was fascinated for most of the movie, genuinely interested in Blanc solving the case. The problem starts in the final part, where Johnson tries to tie up all the loose ends. The last 20 minutes are almost entirely consumed by flashbacks revealing what really happened.” — Jordan Ruimi, Word of Reel.
• “Not only does Josh O’Connor deliver a great comedic performance, but he also adds a real grace to the story. This is Johnson’s most complex detective movie, but also his most emotional. The biggest revelation is how effectively the director explores faith, community, anger and redemption. He never sacrifices entertainment for the sake of it, moving at a brisk pace with one killer joke after another, including a couple of sly punches.” — Chase Hutchinson, The Wrap.

Recall that the “Knives Out” series started in 2019 with Craig, Ana de Armas, Chris Evans and many other A-listers. The film had a successful run, grossing $312 million worldwide despite being released during the pandemic, and was expected to be followed by a sequel with the subtitle Glass Onions. In the second case, the distribution was limited, with priority given to Netflix screenings, to the great expense of the lead actor, and grossed only $13 million. Earlier, insiders reported that the production of the threequel cost $210 million — five times more expensive than the first movie.